STRAT_SCRAPS volume one hundred and fifty three

Branding is a strategic point of view, not a select set of marketing activities.

a consistent image in the marketplace is a valuable asset, which can be rapidly compromised if the firm attempts to serve too diverse a set of client needs. Few firms, in my experience, have a clear picture of their true positioning along the expertise, experience, efficiency spectrum.

If you want a long-lived brand, avoid strategy altogether — instead have an Ideal (like Nike, Apple) or an executional device (Andrex, The Economist). Anything with a strategy is doomed never to outlive your client. Discuss.